INDIA – Carlsberg Group is planning to build a solar desalination plant in a small East Indian town. The facility will be constructed in partnership with Dutch clean-water company Desolenator and will produce 20 m3/d of drinking water for 4,000 people in West Bengal’s Sundarbans region, near the border with Bangladesh. The project is expected to be completed in mid-2021.
The plant will sell clean water at a subsidised rate and hire more than a dozen women in Pathar Pratima. According to Desolenator, the social enterprise model, with all proceeds going towards the salaries and training of the women and maintenance of the water distribution centre, is essential for the poor community. The India project is part of Carlsberg’s plan to reduce water usage at is breweries by half by 2030 and conserve shared water resources in high-risk areas. Carlsberg has identified all seven of its Indian breweries as high-risk sites and is implementing different technologies and water-preservation methods to tackle the problem. (Reuters)
PAKISTAN – The Dutch company AWTEC Netherlands has expressed interest to invest $1.3 billion to build garbage processing desalination and power generation plants in Karachi. AWTEC Netherland presented its proposal at a meeting presided over by Prime Minister Imran Khan in Islamabad. AWTEC also expressed interest to invest in Ravi City Project and the establishment of a renewable energy plant in Lahore. (Radio Pakistan)